Ceasefire in Yemen’s Hodeidah Goes Into Effect

The ceasefire in and around the vital Yemeni aid port of Hodeidah took effect at midnight, local time, Tuesday. With intermittent clashes reported in the lead-up to the deadline, there was a lot of concern that it wouldn’t happen

Most indications are that calm has generally prevailed. Saudi-backed officials claimed some violations in the minutes immediately following midnight, and locals did say that sporadic gunfire was heard for a bit after the ceasefire took effect.

While this meant the Saudi allies were declaring the truce “broken,” it’s not at all clear that’s really the case. After the initial ceasefire announcement didn’t pan out at all, it would be surprising if this Tuesday start didn’t have some hiccups.

Hodeidah is the main aid port in Yemen, supplying 70% of the food entering the country. The ceasefire was intended to prevent Saudi-led forces from occupying, and potentially destroying the port, which is the last source of aid for the Houthi-held north.

Under the deal, the UN is intended to send monitors, all combatants will leave the area around the port, and the port itself will have some UN oversight as well.